Farmers must activate SFP entitlements

Editorial Department • Published 15 Apr 2010 10:20 0 Comments

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Farmers who did not activate their entitlements last year must do so this year, says Agriculture Minister, Michelle Gildernew this week.

In a statement she reminded all Single Farm Payment (SFP) applicants of the changes to the entitlement usage rules.

The Minister said: "I am concerned that farm families are not maximising their farm incomes by claiming their Single Farm Payment each year. If farmers do not activate their SFP entitlements frequently enough they may lose them. In the past, farmers had to activate their entitlements once every three years. From 2010, entitlements need to be activated at least once every two years."

She continued: "One particular group of applicants that worry me are those farmers who did not activate their entitlements in the 2009 SFP scheme years and who may not realise the position they are in. In most cases, if these farmers do not activate their entitlements in 2010, they will no longer be able to claim payment on these. If farmers have not claimed SFP in 2009, they should make sure that they claim this year.

"If entitlements are not activated, they are confiscated and returned to the National Reserve. In 2008, about 1,625 SFP applicants had some or all of their entitlements returned to the National Reserve. These are the EU rules and my Department has no option other than to apply these. Our farmers need to keep a closer eye on their entitlements to ensure they do not lose out under the new tighter time-limits set by the EU this year."

The EU require that SFP entitlements have to be activated at least once every two years If entitlements are not activated they are lost and their value returned to the National Reserve.

For the 2008 scheme year, 1,625 farm businesses either had all or some of their entitlements confiscated.

This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 15 Apr 10

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